Eric Church Paid Ashley McBryde Quite a Compliment the First Time They Met

Ashley McBryde has some friends and fans in high places, one of the biggest being Eric Church. The "Girl Goin' Nowhere" singer credits the country superstar with helping to discover her, and says she was all nerves the first time she met Church and his wife, Katherine, at an office meeting.

"I was in sweatpants and a hoodie," McBryde tells Taste of Country. "They said, 'We're big fans!' and I went, 'Oh God, that's so backwards.' But it was nice."

Shortly after they met, Church invited McBryde to his show in Chicago in April of 2017 and invited her onstage for a surprise performance. It was an appearance that was as much of a surprise to McBryde as it was to the fans in the audience.

"I go to the show, and Eric says, 'You're performing,'" McBryde recalls. "[We] tried to make the best of the worst and we did a really good job with it."

Church sang McBryde's praises to the crowd before bringing her out onstage, calling her "Unquestionably my favorite artist out right now that's not out yet." McBryde then performed her song "Bible and a .44;" readers can press play above to watch a video of that performance.

In March of 2018, McBryde released her major-label debut, Girl Going Nowhere. She is set to embark upon hertour by the same name in the U.S. and Europe in September of 2018. For details, and to purchase tickets, head to her website.